I went on a nice Sunday trip with EOS, the Greek Mountain Club, Hania chapter last Sunday. This is a very active and well organized club. Anyone can join in on our walks, that is every Sunday all year through, and often for the weekend. You can find information here: http://www.eoshanion.gr/en/. You don’t have to be a member or anything.

Crete, and especially the prefecture of Hania has many gorges. The most popular is the Samaria Gorge. Many walk Imbros and Agia Irini, but there are so many choices.

The Polirinia Gorge is one of them. Come with us on this walk from your sofa, and see if you get tempted!!

We started out from the village Sirikari, that is situated above Kastelli in Kissamos region. Here you follow green signs throughout the gorges, this is a green path as it is called.

As we started out on this cloudy December day, it was 6 degrees and pretty cold for a Cretan winter morning. We was a nice group of people of all ages and a cheerful group.

The gorges is easy to walk, with a good path, and no difficulties. We started at the top, you can also walk from the bottom of the gorges, at the Polirinia end were you find a map at the entrance of the gorge. You can easily leave your car and walk a bit into the gorge, or the whole, and turn in 3-4 hours. We used 2 hours as a pretty big group.

There are seldom water in the creek, but the big trees and oleander bushes grow in the riverbed. There is a nice place for a lunch break with benches in the middle of the gorge. We saw beautiful winter flowers, eagles over our heads and of course sheep and goats. And olive trees at both ends as this is olive country!!

The village of Polirinia has been populated before Christ. It was an important town in Hellenistic and Roman time. You can find the old town over the village, and if you climb all the way up to the top the old Acropolis, you have the most wonderful view of the Kastelli bay, The White Mountains, the hills and villages around, and you also see the entrance of the gorge.

The village itself is small in very charming. The drive back to Kastelli is a joy in this landscape.

What do you think, is this something for you and your company?